Mexico says no evidence Venezuela’s Maduro has Mexican bank assets

A banner is seen with a small group of Venezuelan protesters outside the site where the Organization of American States (OAS) 47th General Assembly is taking place in Cancun, Mexico June 21, 2017. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Jasso

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – There currently is no evidence to indicate Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who has just been slapped with U.S. sanctions, has any money in the Mexican banking system, Mexico’s finance minister said on Tuesday.

Jose Antonio Meade, speaking on local television, said if any of the Venezuelan officials who have been sanctioned by the U.S. government were found to have financial assets in Mexico, the country would be obliged to inform the United States and shut down the accounts.

When asked if Maduro, who the White House has dubbed a dictator for “seizing absolute power,” had any bank accounts in Mexico, Meade said: “At this time, we don’t have any information that would allow us to confirm that he does.”

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Maduro mocked the sanctions Washington imposed on him on Monday after Sunday’s election of a new legislative superbody. Mexico has voiced its support for the sanctions and opposed the elections for the controversial legislative body.

At least 10 people were killed in unrest during Sunday’s vote, bringing the death toll from four months of anti-government protests to more than 120. Governments from Spain to Canada to Argentina and Peru joined Washington in denouncing the election, which was boycotted by the opposition and widely seen as an affront to democracy.